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Who would make 2014 more 'A-List'?

So I keep seeing people commenting that '2014 isn't very A-List' and the character choices 'are lackluster'. Could be the same few people posting over and over again, but who exactly would make 2014 more 'A-List'? Right now to me it looks like this:

So... is it a case of people just not liking the fact that there is an NA or PoP figure in the lineup or was there better choices that were completely ignored? Was it the lack of more vintage? No snake man? Needed more filmation? PoP?

Right or wrong, buying a sub tells Mattel you want more MOTUC figures. Not buying does tells them you don't. Don't let MOTUC end early because you might not like their marketing strategy! Plus polls show you won't regret subbing!

From the real releases, which are four figures we have 50% Vintage Motu, 25% POP and 25% NA. I think that´s very fair and i guess the rest of 2014 will be 50% Vintage and the other 50% will be divided between POP/NA/200X/FILMATION/JETLAG.

Add me to the list of people confused with those who don't think the line up they showed was "heavy hitter" enough. The only exception is possibly the sub only figure which I think they missed an opportunity with, but that is covered in another thread.

2014 looks to be an amazing year. Looking at the figures shown so far and with Blade, Scorpia and Huntara added to the mix you can pretty easily figure what we will also see in the year. if they are splitting up the factions evenly still I expect we will get the following:

1. Squeeeze (with Tong Lasher saved for 2015)
2. Rio Blast (Extendar and Gwildor's tooling cost being higher so should fall into the 2015 budget)
3. Evilseed (Scott has said we will still see 200X prominant characters and who better? plus add a filmation head maybe?)
4. Take your pick of a top line POP lady, Mermista? Angella?

If you look at those as logical expectations 9and even if I am way off we will see all of them in 2015 if not) then I think we have almost all of the 2014 line up. I think it is a great list.

Don't get me wrong-there are some cool options left, but the term 'A-List' is a misnomer. "Best of the Rest" is more apt. It's all about maximizing the interest in the remaining characters. And to be frank, if any of these characters was an honest-to-goodness difference maker, they would likely already have a figure. But anyways, I digress...

I think that The five listed are a great start. If the rumor of Blade's sword is to be believed, he's a solid addition.

I'd add Rio Blast, Tung Lashor, Angella, Flogg, and Multi-Bot. I'm not sure any of those names would make a huge difference at this point.

I think the SDCC reveals are pretty A-List to be honest. Totally baffled by people not feeling this is the case. For me, what would make 2014 even sweeter was to have MORE PoP figures. Angella, Entrapta, Sweet Bee, Peek-A-Blue, Mermista, Spinnerella, etc.

I happen to think each faction should have been a separate sub (Vintage, 200X, Pop, Filmation, etc). This way people can get what they want without settling for figs they don't care for.

I think it really boils down to the individual collector. Even though its 1/2 classic toy line motu and then 1/2 POP/NA/200X/FILMATION/JETLAG Its almost too much diversity for people. Why I was so excited for MOTUC was the upgraded classic representations of figures I owned from yesteryears.
Matty Collector is treating MOTUC like Hasbro treated Star Wars. Everyone in every costume is important, the colorful one episode filmation characters, mini comic characters. Sadly He-man and friends doesn't hold the same highly anthropological status that Star Wars has.

Besides 200x and DC MOTU hasn't produced or reproduced any lore or history. So this other 50% is pretty obscure to the general public or buying populace of MOTU. Even the most famous NA, POP, 200x characters are head scratchers to most collectors.

Personally I am really wanting Gwildor and more movie characters. I owned the video cassette as a kid and it is a big part of my love of MOTU.

I think A list 2014 would be the remaining figures that comprised the 1982-1988 original Mattel collection.

Matty Collector has managed to make 60 extra figures "characters" "alternative costumes" so far. I think that is enough stalling on Mattys behalf to just finish the initial line. Instead of blaming the consumers for not being there with financial support.

Don't get me wrong-there are some cool options left, but the term 'A-List' is a misnomer. "Best of the Rest" is more apt. It's all about maximizing the interest in the remaining characters. And to be frank, if any of these characters was an honest-to-goodness difference maker, they would likely already have a figure. But anyways, I digress...

Yeah, this is more the case for me. Most, if not all, of the A list figures are already done at this point. There are some awesome figures still left and I love the lineup for 2014 so far, but I bet none of these figures would have made a combined top 10 or even top 20 list at the very beginning of the line before any figures were revealed.

I don't think there are really any A-list type figures left to do because they are all done. A-list to me is defined by the original vintage 8, faction leaders (Hordak, Hsss), or very prominent key characters (the Sorceress, Evil-Lyn) and most of this would be up to individual interpretation to some extent. I think Mattel needs to look at doing most wanted popular variants (or 2.0) of the A-list figures that have already been done that still embody there original design just with slight deco and paint changes (unlike a redesign variant like Battle Armor He-Man), such as Filmation Hordak, Filmation Teela, or Blue-Vested Adam. This will let a lot of people get a chance to get these figures that missed the first time.

how can you call Modulok and Two-bad non A-list. !! they are about as A-list as you can get if the line was filled with characters such as starchild and a whole bunch of the other kids (like that annoying one from the Icer episode) from the show and no other main characters then you could say they were not A-listers.

- - - Updated - - -

Originally Posted by csc0709

Blue-Vested Adam

I've never heard of blue-vest adam ?was he in the comics or somthing ?

Don't get me wrong-there are some cool options left, but the term 'A-List' is a misnomer. "Best of the Rest" is more apt. It's all about maximizing the interest in the remaining characters. And to be frank, if any of these characters was an honest-to-goodness difference maker, they would likely already have a figure. But anyways, I digress...

I think that The five listed are a great start. If the rumor of Blade's sword is to be believed, he's a solid addition.

I'd add Rio Blast, Tung Lashor, Angella, Flogg, and Multi-Bot. I'm not sure any of those names would make a huge difference at this point.

But the rest is what´s left. And don´t argue with "if they than they would have a figure" argument because that´s worth nothing.

Nepthu, Vykron or Gygor are cool figures and every character has its fans and right to be made but not many asked for them and still they have a figure.

What ever the reason the characters who didn't get a figure but are vital for the stories or where lucky and had a figure in the vintage lines back in the eighties no matter if they are important for the stories or not now is the chance they get made and i think what Mattel presented at SDCC 2013 is a great selection and shows they seem to finally listen!

Because Modulok and Two Bad have very limited media appearances which makes them not very prominent characters, they are not faction leaders, nor original vintage 8 characters.

Yes, from the comics Adam appears with a blue vest.

ah thanks for that . I dunno about 2-bad he did get a cool back story in the 200x toon and I've always though he was an awesome character. Modulok I only know from figure but I would of thought he was a huge fan fav I mean the customization alone would a bumped him from no-namer to a A-lister ok maybe B-lister.

I think the revealed figures are all great, dont get all the hubbub.. I know not everybody is gonna like very figure, but come on; Modulok? Mantanna? Hydron? Glimmer? Two-Bad? Sea Hawk? These are all figures people have been obsessing over for years, and now that they have been revealed it's all "meh" or "I cant believe they did..." or what-have-you.

It could be the sub exclusive making people weary. I really don't get the reasoning behind making a mostly unknown/ completely unrevealed character as the exclusive when this year was marketed to finish up the vintage lines. I highly requested-but-not-necessary character like Eldor, NA Skeletor, or Filmation Hordak would have been a much better way to go in my opinion. Otherwise the other reveals seem pretty on point with me.

I really liked the reveals at ComicCon but was not awed by them like the years before. At this point most of the characters I personally consider A-list have already been made. The one figure I wanted desperately to get before the line ended was NA He-Man. Now that he is done my personal collection feels complete. I still plan to sub simply because collecting MOTUC is still fun but if the line would end I would be fine with it as well. Except for Extendar there is no figure left for me I consider essential. From now on the reveals will be more like "looks cool but I could live without him" instead of "Oh my god he is one of my favorites, I have to get him".

i think the six characters that are announced or hinted at are all A List characters.
but some people will complain about it no matter whoever mattel is offering. nothing can be done about it.
most of the time i just skip those comments cuz they are usually from the same group of people repeat the same complains again and again.

The only complaint I have with the 2014 reveals is in regards to the subscription figure... The mystery figure is the only thing not a main draw (or "a list" as we are using)... Two Bad is a main vintage MOTU villain, Glimmer is a main POP hero, and Hydron is a main NA hero. Modulok is also a main vintage MOTU/POP horde villain that is a perfect quarterly item. I think the reveals were all great, except for that subscription figure... ugh!

For some it's Rio Blast or Tung Lashor, it's more about personal preference and nostalgia than anything.

I personally would have liked to see Dragstor over Rattlor, King Hsss, Whiplash....etc. But that's my preference as I never had those, but I had Dragstor. So if I wanted to, I could be one of those that say....we got those instead of Dragstor....I feel cheated. But whatever, just because Dragstor was one of my top figures, doesn't mean he was for someone else.

Now I can say that we got Spector, Cy-Chop or SLL over Dragstor, now to that I say ********....

I think the reveals at SDCC are spot on... The only complaint I have is the lack of seeing the Unnamed One. Going forward, I would expect to see the likes of Tung Lashor, Madame Razz, Dragstor, Angella, Mermista, Flogg, Imp, Extendar, Ninjor, Squeeze, Peekablue, Saurod, Gwildor... These would make me happy.

Characters like Evil Seed, Huntara, and Masque and other lower tier Filmation, while welcome in my collection, I don't see them as very strong additions to an A-List year.

I think that the reveals for 2014 are much stronger than 2013 as a whole. It feels "A list" to me, especially in regards to NA and POP. Two Bad is a pretty big Evil Warrior heave hitter, more that say Ninjor.

Heck even Goat Man is a pretty strong reveal. I never thought we would even see him.

The only real weakness in the reveals is the Unnamed One, for 2 big reasons I can think of.

#1: We don't know what he looks like. Newly designed characters are a bit of a gamble in this line. For every Draego-Man you have a Sir Lazer Lot or Mighty Spector.
#2: He appears breaks the whole "no concept characters" rule for 2014-2015. As far as I have seen, there were never any prototype figures or sketches of this character from the vintage line. As best I can tell, he was a name dropped in a old mini comics and some vague plans if the line had continued.

Now he may end up looking awesome and will be the "best thing ever", but the uncertainty does nothing to really help boost sales. Sure Scott says he is awesome, but then again he designed Spector. To be fair, Cornboy said he is awesome too, so I would put more stock there

In the end though the showing is very strong. Sure it is out of a pool of what is left as opposed to the line as a whole, but out of what is left it is very strong. Glimmer and Hydron are certainly "A List" for their factions regardless, and Two Bad and Modulock may be B list compared to the entire lineup, but they are very solid B list. And I don't think the uncertainty of the Unnamed One should hold folks back.

I don't think the A-listers are the problem. The fans see the line-up and think that there aren't any big characters. In actuality, the sub is for letting fans complete their rosters -- that's the goal, not wowing you with star power. Two-Bad and Modulok are holes in the Vintage collection. Hydron is a major hole in the NA collection. Glimmer is a major hole in the POP collection. Filling those holes is the point! Hydron might not have the nostalgic clout that Trap Jaw has, but that was never the point of this line-up.

Finishing this fight was...

I still think the best way to bring some life back into the brand is improving the actual A-listers. 2.0 figures. 2.0 figures let fans get a better version of older characters with fixed poblems, new features or accessories (figures made in 2009 versus being made in 2013), allow them to mix and match to customize to their whims AND most importantly, allow new fans access to older "out of print" major characters!

Resellers would have LOVED buying multiple subscriptions if this were the Club Exclusive. Longtime Classics fans would have gotten the ability to make the ultimate version of Teela if they have the original release and new fans jumping onboard would have an easier opportunity to get this very expensive character.

Even the Vintage He-Man Fans (I'd use the proper term, but it's the P-Word and some may get offended by it) have some issues with who's an A-List.
The First two waves of MOTU were made by 2010 (short of two figures that we got in 2011 and 2013) THOSE are the A-List folks to them.

The ones that have a little Filmation Influence would add Sorceress, Adam and Orko to the Waves 1&2 to the list.

The PoP fans have their own A-List folks. She-Ra, Bow, Kowl, Glimmer, Angella, Casta, Frosta, Entrapta and Catra. (add Madame Razz in place of Entrapta if they're more Filmation oriented) But to the Vintage He-Man fan, She-Ra is a D-Lister... Ninjor ranks higher.

NA Fans, well Aside He-Man, Skeletor, Flogg, Slushhead, Hydron and Flipshot there's a few stragglers from waves 3 and 2 that could be considered important to the NA Mythos. Sadly, NA A-List is Z-List compared to MOTU... Mostly due to the NA Hate.

Since MOTUC is an Anthology line, the MOTUC A-List characters should be the cream of the crop of each sub-division.
Problem is that in 2 out of the 3 main sub-divisions those guys would be He-Man and Skeletor. The others would be She-Ra, Hordak and Catra.

Aside of using Spector's Time travel power to fix the roadmap, THOSE Characters are the best we have.
The 8back fans already have THEIR Figures; two Wave 4 Stragglers, a POP and a New Adventures A-Lister won't convince them. The flaws of the roadmap were mentioned as early as 2011 IIRC but Mattel did not see them.

FINALLY!! GLIMMER IS IN MY SHELF!! Now I need a Crita!! Crita is to Mara what Evil Lyn is to Teela. If we ARE getting Mara, then we NEED Crita.

THe diversity of the line is represented in the microcosm of the early 2014 reveals. The effort to include all eras was noble and ambitious but ultimately has led to many, many fans feeling disgusted with the line-ups, dropping subs, and feeling frustrated at having to wade through NA and 200X and PoP just to get to the childhood vintage characters they remember.

The early 2014 reveals are not A-List to many because, frankly, it is not all-vintage. Vintage remains the core of the entire MOTU history and, again to some, everything else that came after is B-list at best.

I can also see PoP fans, NA fans, etc not considering the early 2014 reveals as A-List because the revealed figures are not all their faction either.

We all have our favorite eras and many of us consider the other eras less exciting and less worthy of inclusion. The effort to include all eras and please everyone has risked pleasing no one, especially if the line ends this year and we never finish ANY era, even the vintage line. If that happens, it will be very difficult for many MOTU fans not to eyeball all those PoP and NA and 200X and blame them for not finishing the vintage line.

Personally, I'm glad all eras have been combined but I'm sad that the decision made many fans decide not to support the line at a subscription level and, thus, risks ending the line before ANY era is complete.